1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a cutting device and a tape printing apparatus equipped therewith.
2. Related Art
Heretofore, a tape printing apparatus has been known which carries out a printing on, while feeding, a tape-like member wherein a printing tape (coated with an adhesive) and release paper are stacked, and when the printing is finished, cuts off a portion on which the printing is done, making a label. The label made is used by stripping the printing tape from the release paper, and affixing it to a desired affixing surface. Also, the cutting has a full cutting, which cuts both the printing tape and release paper of the tape-like member by means of a full cutter, and a half cutting which cuts either the printing tape or release paper by means of a half cutter. By carrying out the half cutting, it is possible to make it easy to strip the printing tape from the release paper.
Structures of a full cutter device and half cutter device incorporated in the tape printing apparatus include, for example, JP-A-2002-103281.
With JP-A-2002-103281, the full cutter device, being configured including a fixed blade and a movable blade pivotably supported on the fixed blade via a pivot, carries out the full cutting in the form of scissors. Also, the half cutter device is configured including a half cutter, which has a cutter blade configured of an inclined blade, and a cutter operation mechanism, which causes the half cutter to carry out a circulatory movement circulating through a cutting stand-by position, a cutting start position, a cutting completion position, and a withdrawal position, and returning to the cutting stand-by position, wherein the half cutter moves in a width direction of the tape-like member relative to the tape-like member, carrying out the half cutting.
Also, a configuration, although JP-A-2002-103281 also has the same one, has heretofore been such that the full cutting is carried out, and the cut and separated tape-like member is compulsorily discharged from a tape discharge slit of the tape printing apparatus by a discharge roller which rotates in a direction in which it discharges the tape-like member, in a condition in which it is in contact with the tape-like member, by means of a tape discharge device. A plurality of droop pieces, which spread out in a fan shape by means of a centrifugal force generated by the discharge roller rotating, are included in the discharge roller and, by the droop pieces which have spread out hitting the tape-like member, the cut and separated tape-like member is discharged from the tape discharge slit to the exterior.
With the tape printing apparatus equipped with the heretofore known tape discharge device, during a cutting operation, by deliberately pulling the tape-like member on which the printing is done, it is possible to draw out the tape-like member. In this case, a load is applied to the cutter blade in the cutting operation, and there is a fear that the cutting operation is not normally carried out, a problem occurs in the cutter blade, or the like.
Consequently, there has been a demand for a cutting device, with which it is possible to prevent the tape-like member undergoing the cutting operation from being drawn out, and it is possible, after a full cutting operation finishes, to reliably discharge the cut and separated tape-like member, and for a tape printing apparatus including the cutting device.